Small Steps Lead to Big Success at Animation Festival

It can take numerous small steps to reach the point of accomplishment. This is especially true for Shawnee Mission Animation and Interactive Media students. Their perseverance was evident at this year’s eMagine Festival, a midwest graphic design, web, animation and video competition.

This year, SMSD students enrolled in this Signature Program secured six of the “Top Five” designations out of 15 animation categories in a highly competitive field of more than 330 entries.

Maddie Redmond, a senior from Shawnee Mission West High School, earned 1st Place in Character Animation and was named a Pixel Winner. Ava Winfield, a junior at Shawnee Mission East High School, earned 2nd Place in Character Animation. The AI Art Heist Team earned third Place in Animated Short Story.

Each animation project requires 24 frames for just one second of animation. Additionally, animations require multiple levels of frames, symbols, and the need to follow the principles of animation to create a piece that showcases skill, creativity, and tells a creative story, emphasized instructor Enza Ketcham. These projects can be so tedious, that it is possible students might not even finish. But, Ketcham says she and her students “like to dream big.”

“These students have demonstrated remarkable creativity, technical skill, and storytelling ability,” Ketcham shared. “Their dedication and hard work continue to set a high standard for students everywhere.”

Being recognized for the first place character animation was an “out of this world feeling” for Maddie Redmond. Her project, called a character turnaround, illustrates a character she created from all sides.

“It was something that was meant to be a simple assignment that turned into a gigantic project,” she said. “Sometimes I think ‘This needs something more,’ so I add to it.”

Even though she hasn’t been animating for very long, Winfield said she was happy to place in the eMagine festival. Eventually, she hopes to go to school for animation. It was helpful to know that the awards had been determined by judges who work in the industry, Winfield added.

“I hope to keep improving,” she added. “It gives me a good basis for where I want to be.”

No matter the outcome of the competition, Ketcham sees multiple benefits to students entering their work in the competition.

“I don’t want them to measure their success solely by what they achieved, but by the path they took to compete and share their work with others,” Ketcham expressed.

Shawnee Mission congratulates all of the following students on their eMagine festival projects:

Ava Winfield – Snail Girl

Maddie Redmond – The Realization

James Bebb & Vada Doty – Porco Rosso

Mars Sharp – Phoenix

Olivia Garza – After Tragedy

Stevie Kremer, Lillie Dahn, Silas McCune, Maddie Redmond, & Ava Winfield – The AI Art Heist

Find out more about Shawnee Mission Animation and Interactive Media, a Signature Program offered to SMSD high school students, by clicking here. Click here to learn more about Shawnee Mission School District Signature Programs.